Man sought after panhandling woman dragged up to 200 metres along Calgary street

Calgary police say they're looking for information about a motorist who they say dragged a woman hundreds of metres before she fell from the car.

In a media release Thursday, police requested information about a man they believe was involved in an incident in the city's northeast.

It happened on May 26 around 6:50 p.m. when a woman was believed to be panhandling at the corner of Edmonton Trail and 16th Avenue N.E.

Police say the womanwalked into the parking lot of a nearby convenience store and had a brief interaction with a man, who police believe was driving a silver Toyota Echo.

After the interaction, the woman started walking east on 15th Avenue N.E., and the man drove down the same street and stopped his vehicle near her.

"It is believed the victim requested money from the man, which he agreed to give, before he unexpectedly pulled the money back and quickly accelerated the vehicle," police said in the news release.

Police said the woman was holding on to the car and was dragged for 150 to 200 metresas the driver drove away.

The woman fell off the vehicle and was seriously injured, police said. A friend of the woman carried her to a nearby home and called 911.

The victim was taken to hospitalbut has since been released and is recovering.

Police have described the suspect as around 25 years old and five feet six inches tall, with a slim build.

Police said he has black hair, a chinstrap goatee and a mustache. He was wearing a red T-shirt with a white oval-shaped logo on the chest, black pants and red shoes at the time of the incident.